The purpose of this study is to illustrate middle school teachers’ intentions by including digital game based learning (DGBL) in their mathematics teaching. The study also aims to illustrate what impact teachers believe that DGBL has on students’ learning. A semi-structured interview was used to gather data for the result of this study. The questions in the interview were open with the purpose of getting the teachers to speak freely about how they use DGBL when teaching mathematics and how students are affected by it. The results from the interviews show that teachers use DGBL in their mathematics teaching for four main reasons; complement to their ordinary teaching, variation in their teaching, quick feedback and to help students who struggle learning mathematics. The result was analyzed through the five steps of development from the TPACK theory. The result from the interviews also showed that the teachers believe that DGBL helps encourage students, keeping them more motivated during mathematics class. The teachers explained that the students are more independent when using DGBL. This result was analyzed with the Teachers’ Beliefs theory. The main aspects of what define a belief was the outset of this theoretical analysis.

The aim of this literature review is to investigate and highlight the findings of previous research on the topics of; digital games and English second language learning; digital games and motivation; and implementation of digital games in the classroom. All during the period of 2015 to the first quarter of 2022. The search yielded 943 publications. After reviewing the publications, a total of 20 of the publications were deemed as relevant to the study. A qualitative analysis was then applied to the 20 selected publications. The result of the qualitative analysis indicates that there is a need for more studies carried out in Europe about digital games in a school setting. Most of the publications were done on ‘serious games’ – games that are designed to be used in educational settings. This result indicates a need for more studies carried out on other types of games. The results show that digital games may promote second language skills and increase language learning motivation. The results also indicate that successful implementation of digital games in a classroom setting comes with many challenges.

Uppsatsen är en reflektiv rapport om ett verk som behandlats inom ramen för examensarbete i medier vid Högskolan i Skövde. Verket består av ett designdokument för ett bilspel om riskhantering för körskolor. Innehållet i denna rapport behandlar från ett reflexivt perspektiv arbetet med att utforma ett lärande bilspel (serious game) för körskolor med fokus på riskhantering. Rapporten beskriver inledningsvis rapporten, verkets och spelets syfte och mål, samt fokus och problemställning. Därefter redogörs arbetsprocessen som tillämpats i skapandet av verket och sedan en reflekterande analys kring hur spelets designriktlinjer översatts till- och påverkat spelinnehåll. Sedan görs en analys och reflektion kring de största utmaningarna i utformningen av verket. Slutsatsen som presenteras i denna rapport vittnar om att de största problemen var frågor som att designa innehåll som var roligt och lärande, balansering av spel och lärandemoment, implementation av alkoholmoment, moralisering samt att utforma spel utifrån olika krav och ramar. De flesta av problemen har gått att hitta lösningar på om än svårt, samtidigt som vissa problem anses svåra att lösa då den avsedda produkten som verket beskriver inte existerar.

<p>Uppsatsen är en reflektiv rapport om ett verk som behandlats inom ramen för examensarbete i medier vid Högskolan i Skövde. Verket består av ett designdokument för ett bilspel om riskhantering för körskolor. Innehållet i denna rapport behandlar från ett reflexivt perspektiv arbetet med att utforma ett lärande bilspel (serious game) för körskolor med fokus på riskhantering. Rapporten beskriver inledningsvis rapporten, verkets och spelets syfte och mål, samt fokus och problemställning. Därefter redogörs arbetsprocessen som tillämpats i skapandet av verket och sedan en reflekterande analys kring hur spelets designriktlinjer översatts till- och påverkat spelinnehåll. Sedan görs en analys och reflektion kring de största utmaningarna i utformningen av verket. Slutsatsen som presenteras i denna rapport vittnar om att de största problemen var frågor som att designa innehåll som var roligt och lärande, balansering av spel och lärandemoment, implementation av alkoholmoment, moralisering samt att utforma spel utifrån olika krav och ramar. De flesta av problemen har gått att hitta lösningar på om än svårt, samtidigt som vissa problem anses svåra att lösa då den avsedda produkten som verket beskriver inte existerar.</p>

The focus of this study is the correlation between spent time on gaming and student grades. It is my hypothesis that computer gaming has potential for students to acquire communicative competences in English. The aim of the essay is to see what effect computer gaming have on grading outcomes in the English subject for upper secondary school students in Sweden. The study was conducted using a survey concerning: students’ gaming habits, how much time they spent gaming on a daily basis, what kinds of games they were playing and how they felt that they used English whilst playing those games. The survey was conducted on two English classes in an ICT school. 25 students participated from grades 2 and 3 in the Swedish upper secondary school system. Based on the data from the survey, four gamer-groups emerged based on time spent on playing computer games: Non-gamer, occasional-gamer, moderate- gamer and frequent-gamer. Results indicate that occasional game play (maximum two hours a day) led to higher proficiencies in English (as shown by their grades) than the other groups. There was also an indication that no time spent on gaming might be disadvantageous.

The research focus of this paper discusses digital game-based learning as a novel learning approach and further emphasises on the empirical study of technologies motivating Chinese primary students to study and learn mathematics at home. Considering that digital game-based learning is still under development, the effects of it is still controversial. The aim of this research is to examine family users of digital game-based learning systems through online research methods. It is interesting to study this area from the family users’ perspective because of the online context. In China, the concept of education in the family environment is one full of challenges. The design of a digital game-based learning (DGBL) system needs to consider and balance both parents and young learners’ needs. In order to have a comprehensive understanding of the benefits and issues of a DGBL system in China, a qualitative study was employed with an interpretive research approach using online data collection methods. After analysing the empirical findings, the results of the study will be produced. They will help to examine whether DGBL is a favourable approach to aiding Chinese primary students to study mathematics and improve their academic performances at school. The outcomes of this study are expected to contribute to informatic research and design of future DGBL systems.

Studiens syfte är att fördjupa kunskapen om de digitala spel som används i engelskundervisningen på mellanstadiet, hur och i vilket syfte spelen implementeras samt vilka möjligheter och utmaningar lärare upplever med detta. Materialet samlades in med hjälp av en webbenkät och tolkades dels genom SPSS, dels med hjälp av utvärderingsverktyget PHEG. Resultatet visar att majoriteten av respondenterna använder digitala spel i sin undervisning en gång i veckan eller mer sällan, och de digitala spelen spelas vanligtvis mellan 10-15 minuter under engelsklektionerna för att öka elevers motivation, som en extraaktivitet och för att repetera innehåll. De mest framträdande utmaningarna är brist på tid och svårigheter att hitta passande spel. Lärare som själva spelar tenderar att implementera digitala spel i sin undervisning i större utsträckning än de som inte spelar. Slutsatsen är att det framför allt är läraren som påverkar om ett digitalt spel gynnar språkinlärningen eller inte.

The purpose of the study was to better understand social studies teacher education through preservice professional development that incorporates an online gaming and simulation component. Examination of the impact of online gaming and simulations on the self-efficacy and content knowledge of preservice teachers in the methods course was undertaken. This study employed a mixed methods approach with primacy given to quantitative statistical analyses of data collected pre and post using a content knowledge assessment (AP Government and Politics practice test) and two self-efficacy assessments (SSTEBI-PSSTE and TSES). Results from a repeated measures ANOVA revealed statistically significant differences in preservice social studies teachers content knowledge of civics from pre to posttest administration by gaming status (less than 2 hours and 2 hours or more), testing occasion (pre and posttest), and group by occasion. The gains in content knowledge by participants spending 2 hours or more gaming were greater than the gains for those who spent less than 2 hours gaming. Qualitative analysis revealed themes of content knowledge change, gaming, and active learning in support of quantitative findings. Results from the repeated measures ANOVA on the TSES measure revealed no significant differences by gaming status, testing occasion, or group by occasion from pre to posttest. There was a minimal raw score change from pre to posttest with the participants who played 2 hours or more in iCivics showing slightly less growth in self-efficacy scores on the TSES in comparison to those playing less than 2 hours in iCivics. Results from the repeated measures ANOVA on the SSTEBI-PSSTE measure revealed a statistically significant main effect for testing occasion. Results showed no significant difference by gaming status or for the interaction of group by occasion. Qualitative data collected throughout the research study via interviews and document analysis aided in the explanation of the quantitative results. The present study extends previous research into the use of games to enhance educational experiences. It is clear from this research that the amount of time spent gaming has an effect on participants‘ content knowledge of civics and that online simulations are an effective teaching method.

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The impact of the learner flow experience (LFE) on learning outcomes has been studied for over four decades in a variety of formal and informal instructional settings, including the digital game-based learning (DGBL) environment. Since 2011, the examination of the LFE and its impact on learning outcomes has expanded to computer science-related disciplines, as well as other research communities. During this expansion, an increase in the number and definitions of terms related to the LFE has occurred. Likewise, the number of assessment tools used to capture evidence of the flow experience in learners playing DGBLs has increased. This integrative review examined 66 peer-reviewed articles published between 2011 and 2021, which reported the results of empirical studies seeking to identify and measure the learner experience of flow during DGBL gameplay. More specifically, this study sought to understand how the LFE and its dimensions were conceptualized and assessed in those articles. To do this, the relevant data was extracted from the articles, and, via iterative processes of analyses, the information related to the conceptualization and assessment of the LFE during DGBL game play was identified, analyzed, and organized. The study's findings demonstrated that the number of terms used to describe the LFE dimensions increased during the time period studied, and that there is seemingly little consensus with regard to the conceptualization of the terms or their use in the assessment instruments applied. However, this study also revealed that these terms and the methods by which they were assessed may be examined within the theoretical structure defined by Csikszentmihalyi in 1990, in which he codified nine dimensions to explain the flow experience. These dimensions are: (1) balance of skills and challenge; (2) clear goals; (3) swift, unambiguous feedback; (4) merging of action and awareness; (5) concentration on the task at hand; (6) sense of control; (7) distorted sense of time; (8) loss of ego; and (9) autotelic experience. Organizing the research question findings within this structure enabled the identification of themes of and synonyms for the nine flow dimensions with the addition of the construct flow experience. To encourage future researchers' ability to interpret, compare, and contrast studies of the experience of the LFE during gameplay in the DGBL learning environment, a set of researcher guides was developed following an iterative process of comparisons and analysis across the research questions' findings. These guides present a description of each of the flow dimensions, associated key words and/or key phrases, synonyms for the dimension, and statements or questions used to solicit information from learners regarding their experience of each of the flow dimensions, organized by theorist. The goal for these researcher guides is that they will be used as references for future studies of the impact of flow on learning outcomes for DGBL players through providing a common vocabulary and set of assessment items. They also may help encourage and enhance collaboration between instructional designers and DGBL game designers in creating effective DGBLs that increase learning or user engagement and enjoyment through the fostering of conditions that enable the LFE phenomenon. / Doctor of Philosophy / Many adults recall losing track of time during play as children. Achieving the feeling of being in "the zone" during play or competition was anticipated and relished. As adults, the desire to recapture that state of being blissfully unaware of time, focused only in the moment and free from any concerns frequently drives sales of sporting equipment, leisure activities, and electronically-based games. This experience, called the flow state, can happen when engaging in a wide variety of activities, including learning. Research has shown that if a student reaches the flow state while learning, they learn more and derive greater satisfaction throughout the learning process. This has also been found to be the case for students engaging with digital game-based learning (DGBL) applications. But how do we know if a DGBL player has entered the flow state? Researchers in the fields of instructional design and game design have asked and sought to answer this very question. This study examined the works of these researchers to understand specifically how the flow state was defined and measured in their studies. As a result of this study, researcher guides were created to explain how the learner flow experience and its component dimensions are identified and described, as well as to provide questions that could be posed to students to help evaluate if the flow state was achieved during DGBL gameplay. The goal for these guides is that they will be used as references for future studies of the impact of flow on learning outcomes for DGBL players through providing a common vocabulary and set of assessment items. They also may help encourage and enhance collaboration between instructional designers and DGBL game designers to create effective, enjoyable games for learning.